1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to cushions used to support patients in bed.
2. Description of Related Art including Information Disclosed under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98.
“Immobile” patients are those who are confined to bed. Such immobile patients do not have a tendency to change their position in bed voluntarily. It is therefore desirable for caregivers to manually turn patients in bed on a prescribed schedule (often every two hours) to avoid complications such as pressure ulcers, pneumonia and other related infections that arise from excessive time in a supine position. Published guidelines recommend turning patients 30° when in the lateral inclined position.
Bariatric patients are those patients who are morbidly obese, that is, have a Body Mass Index of 40 kg/m2 or are 45.5 kg (100 pounds) or more overweight The immobile bariatric patient population has special needs for a lateral turning and positioning device due to the tendency of the positioning devices to migrate away or “pop out” from behind the patient while in use. There also is a tendency by the bariatric patient to crush positioning devices due to the imposed heavy weight. Immobile bariatric patients also present challenges to caregivers with the tasks of frequent rotation or other manipulation of such patients.
A number of cushion devices have been described to aid in the maintenance of patients in desired positions on a bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,411 discloses a foam wedge with a cover having a trapezoidal opening on the bottom which exposes the foam. The foam has highly frictional characteristics which retard slippage of the wedge on the bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,811,140 discloses a body support device comprising two wedges which are attached by belts and are oriented along the length of the bed. This device is intended for maintaining alignment while in the supine position and relieving pressure from the bony prominences of the spine.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,977 discloses a pillow-enclosing casing in which a pillow, particularly a foam pillow, is rolled and reduced in volume and then inserted into a tubular casing.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,938,205 discloses a body positioner which extends from the neck to the thigh for use on an examination table. The positioner is made of elongated resilient deformable polyurethane foam and has three major surfaces and three minor surfaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,045,204 discloses a compressed foam article which is compressed and packaged by enclosure in a substantially air-tight sack and a vacuum is drawn in the sack.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,214,326 discloses a body positioner and protection apparatus similar to the above disclosure which also has a removable center portion for covering the side frame to protect the patient.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,233,700 discloses a similar body positioner with cut outs for providing ventilation to portions of the patient's body.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,067 discloses a method packaging a mattress to a small size, in which the mattress is squeezed by compression means which drive the air from mattress and is then placed in a closed container or case.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,569 discloses a cover sheet secured by hook and loop type fasteners on straps to the upper surface of a wedge shaped polyurethane foam pillow with primary and secondary air passageways to facilitate breathing by users.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,359,739 discloses a patient repositioning and position maintenance device with cushioned cylinders which maintain the patient in position. The cylinders are retained on a rectangular fabric sheet with two pockets for the cylinders. A triangular knee wedge is attached to the fabric sheet by hook and loop fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,878,551 discloses a method of packaging a foam pet industry product which involves placing the foam product inside a plastic bag, reducing the pressure to remove air from the bag, and sealing the bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,154,900 discloses a patient turning device which uses air pressure in bladders to laterally rotate a patient. The patient is supported from head to calf.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,292,964 discloses an inclined support pillow formed of two layers with additional hemi-cylindrical cushions which are attached by hook and loop fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,360,387 discloses a fertility cushion with a convex front having a removable cover attached by hook and loop strips. The multiple-foam construction of the cushion is disclosed.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,578,218 discloses a leg spacer pillow comprising two hinged portions with a butterfly shape and hook and loop fasteners to hold the pillow in the closed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,634,045, incorporated herein by reference, discloses a heel elevator support.
None of the discovered prior art disclosures provide the advantages of embodiments of the present invention. They provide a cushion constructed of microbiologically-resistant foam with a relatively strong and resilient core foam and a relatively yielding surface foam. Embodiments of the cushions have a general triangular wedge shape with the front and back surfaces convex. Embodiments have covers with friction and shear reducing properties on the patient sides and on the caregiver sides and nonslip properties on the bottoms, and with straps on the care provider sides to aid in manipulating the cushions.